By Charly SHELTON “And there came a day unlike any other, when earth’s mightiest heroes were united against a common threat! On that day the Avengers were born! To fight the foes no single hero could withstand!” On this day, the Avengers assembled to stop Loki, who intended to conquer Earth with an army of […]
By Steve ZALL and Sid FISH As you start preparing for your Mother’s Day celebrations, why not make her happy by taking her to see one of these great shows: OPENING “Abigail/1702” answers the question ‘What ever happened to Abigail Williams?’ It’s 1702, a decade after The Crucible‘s infamous seductress danced with the devil in […]
By Ted AYALA The name alone causes the casual listener to dismiss its possibilities: toy piano. In fact, for decades it was just that – a children’s toy that, at most, was sometimes employed in the “toy symphonies” often devised as household entertainments by 19th century composers. But it took composers like John Cage in […]
By Ted AYALA David Lockington has plenty reason to smile these days. The English-born conductor has nearly wrapped up his first season at the helm of the Pasadena Symphony (he also currently holds the music directorship at the Grand Rapids Symphony in Michigan). By all accounts it has been an audience and critical success. “It’s […]
The El Cordova Hotel on Coronado Island By Greg ARAGON Coronado Island is a seaside paradise in the San Diego Bay that is full of history, offering a relaxing atmosphere and great weather. The small resort town is also home to a charming boutique hotel called El Cordova, which I recently discovered on a memorable […]
By Ted AYALA An enthusiastic audience hailed the world premiere of Ian Krouse’s “Armenian Requiem” last Wednesday night, taking place at a UCLA Royce Hall that was well-nigh packed to the rafters. The 15-movement work is massive not only in its length, which weighs in around the 90-minute mark, but also because of the forces […]
By Jason KUROSU La Cañada resident Carol Wawrychuk explores family and faith in her latest book, “Taking Nana Home,” the story of the search for her late grandmother and the long journey of bringing her home to the family burial plot in Erie, Pennsylvania. Wawrychuk’s grandmother, Mildred Johnson, died in 1970 while she was a […]
By Ted AYALA They shared a similar musical aesthetic, lived in the same city for over a decade, mingled in the same circles, and their births were separated by a mere 17 months. But cruel destiny nonetheless shaped and ultimately diverged the respective paths of Francis Poulenc and his Dutch contemporary Leo Smit. For while […]
By Isiah REYES Glendale rocked to the music of Arturo Sandoval and his big band when they performed Saturday night at the Alex Theatre along with the 2015 Arturo Sandoval Institute All Star Youth Band for “Save the Music 3.” Sandoval is a 2013 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, a 10-time Grammy Award winner, an […]